The invention relates to a system that feeds gaseous or liquid media into a number of moveable sample vessels or reaction vessels on a rotor in vacuum centrifuges or on an integrated shaker plate in reaction chambers, for simultaneous processing of the samples contained therein, with an adapter plate of adjustable height being arranged inside the centrifuge or reaction chamber above the sample vessels or reaction vessels, with needles that are allocated to the individual sample vessels or reaction vessels being arranged on said adapter plate, and with a system for the introduction of gaseous or liquid media.
The processing of samples in vacuum centrifuges and reaction chambers creates problems which have not yet been solved satisfactorily.
The samples are usually in test tubes or racks with appropriate recesses. As these sample vessels are very narrow, i.e. the ratio of vessel depth to vessel diameter is very large, the following problem arises: the cooling of the sample due to evaporation makes the neck of the sample vessel cold and thereby substantially prevents vapour phase from being sucked out of the sample vessels.
A device in which the sample vessels are placed in preheated or heated racks is known from PCT/CH 97/00431 and vacuum centrifuges. As the cooling due to the energy of vaporization can only be very poorly compensated by heating or IR radiation, and the sample vessels are usually made of a well insulated material such as glass or plastic, it has to be accepted that certain applications will involve extremely tedious processes.
EP-A-0 210 014 describes a sample treatment system equipped with a device for washing the sample vessels. The washing device has needles which are arranged in a washing block and allocated to individual sample vessels. The washing block is part of a multi-functional and so-called integrated transfer head. The washing block can be moved vertically in order to introduce the needles into the sample vessels. However, this system would be unsuitable for use together with sample vessels that move sideways during processing because the washing block is incapable of lateral movement.
WO 90 02605 A describes an apparatus for peptide synthesis which has a liquid feed system, for example for washing the reaction chambers. The liquid feed system can be moved away from the reaction chambers when it is not needed. Again, this liquid feed system is unsuitable for use with sample vessels that move sideways because it is incapable of lateral movement.
The object of the invention is to provide a system which overcomes said disadvantages of the state of the art.
According to the invention, this object is achieved by a feed system of the type mentioned at the outset, which is characterized in that the adapter plate is rigidly connected to the rotor or the shaker plate in its direction of motion in such a way that the needles can be introduced into the sample vessels while the rotor or the shaker plate is moving.
This system makes it possible to introduce warm gas or liquid into the moveable sample vessels in order to prevent the neck of the sample vessel from becoming cold during the evaporation process and to enable reagents to be introduced simultaneously into the individual sample vessels.
The adapter plate and the sample rack, or the rotor in the case of a centrifuge, are coupled together so that the position of the needle in the corresponding sample vessel remains unchanged during shaking or centrifugation. Preferably, the adapter plate can be heated so that the medium is preheated when it flows into the sample vessels. In the case of systems used in vacuum evaporators, the flow rate of the preferably inert gas is reduced so as at least to prevent the neck of the sample vessel from becoming cold. The faster the gas flow, the more powerful the vacuum system has to be in order to maintain the desired vacuum in the reaction chamber.
Operating this device under pressure demands an appropriate pressure-resistant reaction chamber designed according to the state of the art as described in PCT/CH 97/00431.